Vaccine clinical trials at University of California Health

This phase 1/2 trial tests the safety and effectiveness of a cancer vaccine called Labvax 3(22)-23 and GM-CSF alone or in combination with pembrolizumab in treating adenocarcinoma that has spread to other places in the body (advanced stage). Labvax 3(22)-23 is designed to target a specific antigen (labyrinthin), which is a protein found on the surface of adenocarcinoma tumor cells. Labyrinthin is a protein that is not expressed on normal cells in the skin, lungs, salivary glands, pancreas, nor other tissues. In adenocarcinoma, the tumor cells produce too much labyrinthin causing them to express this protein on the surface of the tumor cells. One way to control the growth of these tumor cells is to teach the immune system to generate an immune response against the labyrinthin protein by vaccination against labyrinthin. GM-CSF, or sargramostim, is a protein that acts as a white blood cell growth factor. It has also been shown to stimulate immune system. Thus, administration of GM-CSF may help to boost the immune system response when given together with the vaccine. This study may improve the general knowledge about Labvax 3(22)-23 and how the body may generate an immune response to kill adenocarcinoma tumor cells. In the second phase of the study, participants will also receive pembrolizumab, which may improve anti-cancer activity when given with Labvax 3(22)-23 and GM-CSF.

Immunocompromised individuals, such as solid organ transplant (SOT) recipients are at high risk of COVID-19 associated complications and mortality. Retrospective studies so far have shown that a majority of SOT recipients did not develop appreciable anti-spike antibody response after a first, second, or even third dose of mRNA vaccine. Treatment with antimetabolites was associated with poor vaccine response. The goal of this study is 1) examine whether transient immunosuppression reduction improves the immune response to a third dose of SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccine in kidney transplant recipients and 2) to assess the safety of immunosuppression reduction before and after third dose SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccination.

This phase I trial tests the safety and side effects of a PD-L1/IDO peptide vaccine (IO102-IO103) in combination with pembrolizumab in treating patients with non-muscle invasive bladder cancer. IO102-IO103 is a novel IDO and PD-L1 peptide based immune-modulatory therapeutic. It is designed to activate the patient's own immune cells (called T-cells) to fight the tumor and stop the tumor cells escaping from the body's immune system. IO102-IO103 works to directly kill tumor cells and remove the body's immune suppressive cells, which are cells that prevent the immune system from fighting the tumor. Immunotherapy with monoclonal antibodies, such as pembrolizumab, may help the body's immune system attack the cancer, and may interfere with the ability of tumor cells to grow and spread. Giving IO102-IO103 in combination with pembrolizumab may make tumor cells more visible/recognizable to the immune system.

Persons without a spleen are susceptible to potentially lethal infections from certain bacteria, with pneumococcus being the most prevalent. Vaccines are provided to help protect against these infections, though they do not so with certainty. Trauma patients who sustain an injury to their spleen currently have three treatment options available for the treating surgeon - nonoperative management, embolization, or removal of the spleen. The purpose of this study is to investigate the antibody response to pneumococcal vaccine in patients undergoing these modes of therapy.